Irving subsidiary purchases stretch of Aroostook County railroad

Eastern Maine Railway, a subsidiary of J.D. Irving Ltd., has purchased a 28-mile stretch of railroad tracks in Aroostook County from the Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway.

The stretch of track is between Madawaska and Van Buren and includes the international bridge that crosses from Van Buren into St. Leonard, New Brunswick, according to Mary Keith, a spokeswoman for J.D. Irving.

Financial details of the deal, which officially closed on Monday afternoon, were not disclosed.

This 28 miles, however, has stood between Eastern Maine Railway’s operations and the Canadian National’s railroad network on the other side of the border.

To Keith, the acquisition “is a good strategic opportunity” for J.D. Irving.

“For us, we see it as an important link and an important piece of the overall network in terms of providing efficient service,” Keith said. “For those folks operating manufacturing operations — primarily forest products manufacturers — it’s going to mean less handling of freight because it’s now on a seamless stretch of track.”

The 28 miles was not included in the original deal with the state because at the time it was viable as a short-line operation serving the Twin Rivers paper mill in Madawaska, according to Robert Grindrod, CEO of the Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway. However, that business also faced challenges as Twin Rivers began using the line less.